In 1986 I had the pleasure of living and working in Canada for some 13 months. One of the delights of that year was discovering muffins! Especially blueberry muffins…
Somewhere along the way I picked up a little spiral bound muffin cookbook, which I have used ever since. It has THE most delicious muffin recipes in it, and our favourite is “Marilyn’s Blueberry” muffins – which I made this afternoon. I reckon I’ve made thousands of blueberry muffins using this recipe – it’s so quick and easy, and they taste delicious.
Here’s the recipe (just multiply the quantities for more muffins!); you’ll need three mixing bowls for this recipe:
TEMP: 400F (I use 180-200C)
TIME: 20 mins
MAKES: 12 large muffins
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour (Australia: plain flour)
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (or 1 can if you don’t have fresh)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup white sugar
Note:
- 1/4 cup = 60 ml / 2 oz
- 1/2 cup = 120 ml / 1 oz
- 1 cup = approx 250 ml / 8 oz
- 1.5 cups = 350 ml / 12 oz
METHOD:
- In a small bowl, beat eggs, milk and butter.
- In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and the 2 tablespoons of sugar.
- Stir the liquid ingredients in the small bowl into the dry ingredients in the large bowl.
- In the third bowl, mix together the blueberries with the remaining sugar and flour.
- Gently fold the blueberry mixture in to the ‘cake’ mixture in the large bowl.
- Fill muffin cups and bake at 400F (200C) for approximately 20 minutes.
BTW, I found that you can still get the book online from at least one secondhand bookseller. The authors are Bidinosti and Wearring and the book is “Muffins: a cookbook”; my copy was published in 1982 by Muffins Publishing, Inc. and is the 9th printing (1984).
Update (8 August 2007): Picture of very ‘bursty’ blueberry muffins sitting in the late afternoon sunlight made yesterday. These were made with frozen blueberries and had been out of the oven about 5 minutes when I took the photo.
Update (16 July 2009): Added metric and imperial measures for cups
Those look good, even though I’m not really that partial to blueberries. I have been craving my favourite recipe banana muffins, but with bananas at $16.99 a kilo at the fruit and veg shop (as seen today) there’s NO WAY I’ll be baking any for some time!
These ones were made with canned blueberries, so they tend to be a bit purple throughout as the blueberries are quite juicy. The ones made with fresh or frozen blueberries are more cake-like with whole blueberries poking through.
[...] I’ve written about blueberry muffins before, and the Canadian recipe I was to make mine. I’m back in the groove again, and made some more earlier this week. They’re nearly all gone now (my husband *loves* them), so another batch will get made later today. [...]
I just finished and sampled the “best” blueberry muffin recipe it is so delicious. My kids love them, we’ll see about my husband when he gets home. I thought they were great. We tend to be a very picky family.
[...] by the randomness of people finding me via search engines when they are looking for the “best blueberry muffin recipe” (that post alone is my ‘top performer’, with nearly 2000 hits as at this [...]
[...] in July 2006, I shared my excellent 20 year old blueberry muffin recipe on this blog. It has consistently rated as my top post. In fact, of some 9000 hits on my blog since [...]
I clicked on this recipe because it looked simple and didn’t have ingredients that would take more time out of my busy schedule to assemble, such as lemon peal grated or sifted flour. They look great and can’t wait to try them.
[...] You can find the two recipes here and here. [...]
So far so good. I tried another recipe for blueberry muffins and had to throw them away. So am I hoping these ones turn out.
Yay, they did work out. I was a little skeptical after the other recipe, but no these are quite yum.
Glad you liked them!
Why does it list 1.5 cups flour and then later another 1/4 cup flour? I’m confused.
Hi Karen
The first lot of flour (1.5 cups) is used in the mixture; the second lot of flour (1/4 cup) is used to coat the blueberries. You’ll find there are two lots of sugar too—for the same reason.
Hi,
I just made your recipe using wild Maine blueberries I picked up at a farm stand. Your recipe is really really good! thank you so much. I actually prefer these muffins to the “best recipe” cookbook blueberry muffins. One note to other users: I would use salted rather than unsalted butter, or add a pinch more salt to the recipe if salted isn’t available. I also admit that I could not stop myself, and I added DOUBLE the berries… and they were still great
Thanks again!
Hi Susee
Glad you liked them! I’ve had them with fresh blueberries a few times, but not WILD Maine ones! (they’re a bit hard to find in Western Australia…). Personally, I use margarine, and I’ll sometimes add a bit more or less of some of the ingredients – I’ll often add more blueberries. Never seems to worry this recipe!
I just surfed the web and found this recipe. I picked some wild Newfoundland berries in my garden this morning and now I’m going to try your recipe. They sound delightful!! We all love all kinds of berries in my family. Maybe I’ll try the recipe with patridgeberries too!
Hi!
It’s getting to the end of blueberry season here in Finland but I’ve got plenty still. It’s been a good year for berries up here. We also had some wonderfully sweet raspberries growing wild – kids have taken care of them though..
Can’t wait to try this recipe later today. Suppose I should post AFTER making, but I’m so excited. Thanks for the recipe!
I wonder where your poster was who said bananas cost $16.99 /kg?! I’m in the wrong business, clearly. Must start exporting bananas from Finland!
Hi Matti
TFP lives in Perth, Western Australia. In April 2006 a massive cyclone (hurricane) hit far northern Queensland, the main banana-growing area of Australia, which pushed over the banana palms and pushed the prices into the stratosphere. The only Australian bananas you could buy were the ones grown in the north west of Western Australia—which typically accounts for only 10% of the total Australian crop. Demand way exceeded supply, so the price of bananas skyrocketed for almost a year. Most people stopped eating them, or treated them as a luxury instead of an everyday food.
I just found your recipe and was wondering if I still add the additional flour and sugar if I am using the canned blueberries? My mother-in-law will be visiting soon and blueberry muffins are her favorite!
Hi Joy
Yes. Drain the canned blueberries first, then mix them with the flour and sugar. They’ll be a little mushier than fresh of course, but it’ll still work fine. They’ll look a bit like those in the top photo.
[...] popular post: The *best* blueberry muffin recipe, with some 14,723 page [...]
I just made your muffins and they are DELICIOUS….I live in Newfoundland, Canada and had some yummy fresh wild blueberries. I doubled the recipe for double the yum!
thanks for sharing
cheers
F
I’m about to go make these muffins. I live in Ontario, Canada and will be using blueberries picked at a berry farm near here. The picture convinced me to try this recipe. I’m looking forward to these! They’re to be an after school snack for my niece & nephew as well as my own 3 girls.
Thanks for posting!
Sara
Hi,
I’d like to know how should i tweak the recipe to make banana blueberry muffins?
Thanks!
Hi Alicia
I’ve never tried that but I guess there’s a couple of ways you could experiment.
Typically, if you’re substituting one fruit for another or need to add an extra fruit, you’d look at the fruit ingredient quantity and replace ‘1 cup of blueberries’ with ‘1 cup of mashed banana’, OR with ‘1/2 cup blueberries and 1/2 cup mashed banana’.
Alternatively, because mushy bananas are a ‘wet’ ingredient, you could try cutting back the milk or butter a little.
Or you could abandon caution and just add the bananas to the existing recipe and see what happens! Experiment by only adding one banana – if that works, try again with two.
Let’s know how you go!
(Update: Or you could do a search for ‘banana blueberry muffins’ and come up with a recipe like this: http://www.lanierbb.com/recipes/data/183.html)
[...] those little beaters have sure had their day. And now maybe with a decent mixer, I’ll make blueberry muffins and the like more [...]
I am a Canadian living in Greece and blueberry muffins are a favorite with my sons. Unfortunately blueberries are extremely rare here. I just found some frozen blueberries in a tiny Polish deli in downtown Athens and I can hardly wait to make this recipe. First though, a question …. are the measurements listed here the Canadian measurements from the book or have they been converted the Australian equivalents? I’m always on my toes when it comes to “whose” cup are we talking here? USA, UK, Canada, Australia or …….. here in Greece there are teacups, coffee cups, water glasses, breakies, ouzo glasses etc. etc. etc. …….. all used for measuring. It’s a minefield believe me. Many thanks in advance if anyone has an answer.
Hi Roxann
The recipe is copied direct from the Canadian book, except for the Australian ingredient equivalents. I just checked the measurements in a free converter program I use and here they are:
* 1 cup equals 8 ounces or 0.5 pints (US); 8.3 ounces or 0.4 pints (UK); or 236 ml
* 1 teaspoon equals 4.9 ml (~ 5 ml)
* 1 tablespoon equals 14.8 ml (~ 15 ml), or 3 teaspoons
(The converter program is available from http://joshmadison.com/software/convert/)
HEllo! I am currently making these, but I could have used more direction in the coating of the blueberries. I just mixed them all together. After I read the comments I saw that I was supposed to coat, I just dumped it all in. I can’t wait to try them… my daughter really likes the blueberry muffins from a restaurant called Souplantation and I am trying to replicate those… I will let you know how it goes!
I bought a can of blueberrys and was going to make a cobbler with them. Then I saw your recipe .So I am going to try your muffins with the canned ones hope they are good will let you know .
I baked these muffins this morning and they were fabulous! I used frozen blueberries (thawed, rinsed and drained) and I substituted whole wheat flour for the all purpose flour plus added 2 tbsp of wheat gluten to ensure they rose properly. They were light and fluffy – even with the substitution to wheat flour so I imagine they must “melt in your mouth” when using white flour! They also weren’t too sweet as many muffin recipes can be. Next time I may substitute unsweetened applesauce for 1/2 of the butter to make them lower in fat. Easily the best muffins we’ve ever had – I can’t wait to try substituting the blueberries with cranberries/orange and/or apple/raisin! Yum!!!!
I tired making some blueberry muffins (baking muffin for the first time) off this other recipe from the internet and they taste bitter!!! I really don’t know why and I am hoping to use ur recipe to make some more muffins tomorrow and hopefully I will be able to finally make some edible and tasty muffins >.<
I just baked them according to ur recipe and omg they taste delicious!!!!!! btw, how u make the base not so burnt? For my ones , the base of the muffin ( surface area surrounded by the muffin tin) are much more browner than the top…..and I am already using non-stick muffin tin. Do I need to add liner or something? is there any alternative?
Junegem: I don’t think I’ve ever thawed the frozen ones – I’ve just put them straight in out of the freezer and they’ve been fine. A little thawing occurs while they’re being mixed with the flour and sugar, and then the main mixture, but you can add them pretty near frozen without any problems.
Gladys: I’ve never had mine burn. Perhaps your oven temperature was too high? Or you were using the quite small muffin trays (mine are medium but not jumbo)? Maybe you could try using those fluted muffin paper patties (or whatever they’re called). I always give my non-stick muffin trays a quick spray of one of those aerosol cooking oils to stop them sticking, ‘cos even with non-stick, the muffins do sometimes stick a bit. Another thing: Were you baking them on the top shelf of the oven? Older ovens (not fan-forced) collect a lot more heat at the top than at the bottom. I tend to rotate my trays part way through the cooking process if I have more than one tray in the oven – the top tray goes to the bottom/middle and vice versa. This makes the cooking a bit more even.
Getting ready to prepare these muffins so I’ll let you know how they turn out. Looking forward to them being as tasty as everyone says.
Yum!! The muffins came out very nice and I like how they aren’t super sweet. All natural ingredients and not out of a box. Thank you so much for posting this recipe for all of us to share! They were super easy to prepare and clean up was a breeze.
Hi Rene
Glad you enjoyed them!
[...] in July 2006, I shared my excellent 20 year old blueberry muffin recipe on this blog. It has consistently rated as my top post. In fact, of some 9000 hits on my blog since [...]
Hey there, just to let u know, i have bought those silicon tray and the over-cook problem goes away. I agree with u that my top tray ones often (probably due to the higher temperature) burst in the middle top and the inside mixture overflows over it. Imagine it’s a bit like a volcano eruption in process. haha.
But yeah, thanks so much, I have made more than 100 blueberry muffins ever since i stumbled across ur blog. I have shared them with my family, my neighbours, my friends, and I even use them as Christmas treats! And the general concenus is : VERY YUMMY! Thank you. Now I am making another batch to share with my hospital colleagues tomorrow as it’s my last day working in that department.
My name is Kelly from QLD, Australia…it was so great finding a recipe with basic ingredients and measurements in understandable quantities. Can’t wait to give these a go! I’m going to try mixed berries for mine, delicious.
These muffins had a fantastic flavor and the crumb was great. BUT, my tops were not very brown, and I actually like a brown top. Any suggestions? This one goes right in the recipe box. Is it good with other ingredients like chocolate chips or cranberries?
Hi all, tried these muffins yesterday, lush, lush, only wish the recipe was in metric, we dont do cups in wales had a little difficulty in switching over. Bora Dda to all,( good morning)
just chiming in to say delicious! and requested to be made again by my mate who never asks for me to make anything again, here’s a picture!
muffins!
@Aja – For browner tops, put the muffin trays on the top shelf of the oven about 5 mins before they’re finished cooking. I tend to switch the trays around once during the cooking process, thus ensuring both trays get exposure to the hottest part of the oven (the top) for at least 5 mins. Of course, this assumes that you’re using a standard oven and not a fan-forced or convection oven. Microwave ovens just WON’T work well with these. Last time I tried microwaving them (MANY years ago), they turned out pale and rubbery. The flavour was there, but the texture and look were awful.
@Linda – look at the comment I left on November 10, 2007. That gives you the conversions.
@Ramona – Nice picture! I wouldn’t have thought to make them as mini-cakes, though now I see yours, there’s absolutely no reason not to.
none at all! and these are so good…I mean…is one muffin’s worth really enough?!
I haven’t tried your recipe but hope to soon, if I can work out the answer to the following question…..every time I cook blueberry muffins it doesn’t matter what the recipe they always seem to stick and I end up with half of the muffin out and half still in the pan….what am I doing wrong?
@Beth
Even though I use non-stick muffin tins, I still use a cooking spray in the ‘cups’. The other thing I sometimes do is use paper muffin ‘cups’ inside the metal cups. Others swear by silicon pans – have you tried them?
Hello! I’m over in Virginia Beach, Virginia… my hubby and I havent been here long, we’re waiting to go back to Texas where we have all our fruit trees and bushes… but I miss cooking with pecans and berries and decided that today is going to be a baking day… and this looks like the best recipe for muffins i’ve found so far. And a lot of people seem to like them, based on all the comments, so I’m going to give them a try… I’m going to test it out with mulberries though (hubby picked a bunch of them for me and I hear they’re kinda hard to get unless you know someone with a tree). I’ll let ya know how they turn out.
Well, leave it to me and my older-than-dirt oven to burn the bottoms of them, but other than that they are a beautiful golden brown and taste really good with mulberries! Thanks for the recipe, its definitely going in my kitchen drawer for reuse.
Mulberries! My favourite—but as you say, really hard to get unless you know someone with a tree. You’re very lucky to know someone with a tree. My grandmother used to make the most amazing mulberry pie—like any fruit pie but with these freshly picked mulberries. Served hot with cream and ice-cream they are one of my most memorable food memories from childhood.
I made a batch last night and they tasted like rubber/foam? Does anyone know what went wrong?
Great recipe!! I just made a batch and used frozen berries (just keep them frozen until ready to mix with the flour and sugar) and it turned out GRRRREAT!!
Thank you SO much!
Glad you enjoyed them, Tara! That’s exactly what I do with frozen ones—leave them in the pack until I’m ready to coat them with the flour and sugar, then throw them in still frozen. This keeps their shape and colour and they don’t ‘bleed’ through the mix while cooking.
Made your Blueberry muffins this AM. Turned out great. Best muffins I have ever made. I used fresh berries. Sure glad I lucked up on your recipe. Thanks,
it sure is a “Keeper”.
Hello there. Could this recipe work with dried blueberries?
Hi Jenna
I would expect so, though I’ve never tried. But perhaps you should try a batch with them dried and another batch after having soaked them for a while to plump them up. Then let us know!
hi im wanting to make these muffins but i’m wondering why would you use plain flour? would’nt you want them to rise, therefore using self raising?
The baking powder is the rising agent.
I haven’t been able to find a good muffin recipe until now. This is one of the best blueberry muffin recipes I have ever tried and so easy to make. My husband doesn’t enjoy sweets, but these received the “both thumbs up” and big HMMMM. You can’t do better than that! A big thank you from a grateful Canuck.
Excellent recipe! I actually used more blueberries than it called for and had no problems. Does anyone know how to remove baked-on blueberries from my muffin tin?
[...] that I picked in the summer, I looked on WordPress.com for a muffin recipe. I found one at http://sandgroper14.wordpress.com/2006/07/09/the-best-blueberry-muffin-recipe/#comment-6621 . Very easy and quick. The muffins are good and they freeze well. I was able to use more [...]
Hi there, i was wondering if I could get your very yummy recipe in metric form (eg : grams, litres). I’m not so used to the readings in cups…
I’ve just added the conversion information at the bottom of the ingredients list.
We live in the middle of blueberry and cranberry country here in Pitt Meadows BC. We usually get around 25 – 40 lbs berries every year. Your recipe sounds so good!
I just popped these into the oven. Company will be the taste test unless my husband gets at them first which will mostly likely happen.
I doubled the recipe and put in 3 cups blueberries. Im going away for a few weeks and had some strawberry yogurt that needed using up. I add that as part of the milk. I made 1 dozen muffins and 2 small loaves. If they turn out as I hope I will add some fresh cranberries to the next batch.
Well…………….The verdict is mmmmmmmmmmm!!! I will definitely make these again. Hope they make it till our company comes.
I increased the time to 30 min as they were larger muffins.
Hi Pauline
Where I live in Australia, we pay about $6 for a punnet of blueberries (perhaps 100 to 250g). The idea of 25 to 40 lbs for free boggles my mind!!
that are really mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!
really good and I love, them.
I made these this morning and they were great, though I think I added a few too many blueberries (maybe 1/3 cup more than called for). Don’t make this mistake – 1 cup is plenty!
All right! All these comments have me baking this afternoon, going to give it a go (and I’m a terribly inexperienced baker, so this recipe works for me lol)
my husband brought home a can of S&W blueberries 3 months ago and I googled to find something I can do with it. This recipe looks amazing – will try it out this weekend. Fresh blueberries cost about 5 euros for a tiny punnet here (appor 40 berries) – far too dear here. Will see how the canned ones go.